Attachment for hypodermic syringes



p 1942- G. KAYDEN 2,295,849

ATTACHMENT FOR HYPODERMIC SYRINGES Filed Oct. 25, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet ll VENTOR us Zak/2 ffqyden I ATTORNEY Sept. 15, 1942. G. 1.. KAYDENATTACHMENT FOR HYPODERMIC SYRINGES Filed Oct. 25, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR Gus tax e L Hayden A ORNEY Patented Sept. 15, 1942 ATTACHMENTFOR HYPODERMIC SYRINGES Gustave L. Kayden, Great Neck, N. Y.

Application October 25, 1940, Serial No. 362,708

12 Claims.

This invention relates to automatic operating means for hypodermic andthe like syringes, and

contemplates the provision of an attachment adapted to be readilyapplied by unskilled persons to a conventional glass syringe of the typein common use, for first moving the syringe as a unit and therebycausing the needle to pierce the skin of the patient, and then movingthe plunger or piston of the syringe within its barrel to inject ameasured quantity of liquid medicament automatically under the skin.

My invention further contemplates the provision of a simple andefllcient holder for a convertional syringe, the holder being providedwith spring-operating means easily set and controlled by unskilledpersons or by the patient himself to perform both functions of thesyringe, namely, to pierce the skin and to inject the medicament.

The various objects of the invention will be clear from the descriptionwhich follows and from the drawings, in which- Fig. l is apartialelevatlon and partial vertical section of one form of theinvention as it appears when attached to, a conventional syringe and setready for operation prior to the release of the locking latches.

Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view of the same.

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the same taken on the line 33 ofFig. 1 and showing a detail of the latch which normally locks theplunger-operating means.

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the same taken on the line 4-4 ofFig. 1 and showing particularly the latch controlling theneedle-operating means.

Fig. 5 is a vertical section of a modified form of the invention.

As has been hereinbefore indicated, the present invention is intended tosupport and operate a conventional syringe such as is designated by thenumeral In (Fig. 1). Such "conventional syringe is preferably of thetype having a glass barrel ll terminating in a reduced tapered neck I2onwhich the hub of the Luer needle I3 is removably mounted. The plunger14, which is also made of glass and which is fitted to the inside of thebarrel ll, serves as the piston to eject the liquid from the barrel.Said plung r is usually of uniform diameter throughout the greatest partof its length and slides easily within the barrel and is provided at itsupper end with the head or handle l5. customarily, the-barrel is markedwith graduations ii to indicate the amount of its contents.

In the various forms in which my invention has been embodied, means areprovided to hold the syringe barrel, which means are movable togetherwith the barrel as a unit relatively to a member adapted to rest on theskin, and serving as a relatively stationary hand-grip means with whichto hold the syringe support and operating mechanism. Such movement ofthe barrel injects the needle through the skin. Mechanism is alsoprovided for accomplishing the movement of the syringe-holding meansinto needle-injecting position when unlocked or released for thatpurpose. Means are also provided to move the syringe plunger in theproper direction within the barrel to. discharge liquid through theneedle after the skin has been pierced. Suitable adjustments may also beprovided to adapt the various forms of the invention for use inconnection with needles differing substantially in length and withdifferent amounts of movement of the plunger and different quantities ofliquid to be injected.

The syringe holder or attachment H, in the form shown in Figs. 1 to 4,consists of a sheet metal or the like body member 58 shaped to receivethe barrel, a sleeve 09 secured to the member l8 and movable therewithand carrying the mechanism for operating the syringe and a presser foot20 adapted to rest on the body surface at the point where the injectionis to be made.

Projecting from the member l8 are a number of generally circular openspring clamps 2|, 22 having an opening or space 23 therein for thepassage of the syringe barrel into the body member it to be held thereinby the pressure of the clamps. While the syringe is longitudinallyadjustable frictionally within the clamps and within the member I8, Iprefer to provide the forked end 24 on said member to engage the neckii. of the syringe and to abut against the lower end of the barrel ll,though permitting a slight longitudinal adjustment of the syringewithinthe member l8. However, I prefer to obtain the adjustment of the syringebarrel as to the depth of part by which the attachment is held by thephysician or operator while the injection is made. Reciprocatinglymounted in the cylindrical opening 28 of the base is the sleeve I9 whichis in 'on the piston 32 operating in the sleeve is. To

the piston rod 33 is secured the ratchet toothed rack 35 designed to beengaged by a suitable latch 35 to hold the piston 32 at any desiredposition in the sleeve. The piston rod 3 may be connected operatively tothe plunger Id of the syringe by the extension 35 pivoted as at 37 to abracket 38 on the piston rod and suitably shaped to engage the head I ofthe syringe plunger, being provided with a flange 39 to engage the sideof the plunger head. The spring 43 urges the extension 36 toward theplunger head, but permits-the extension to be turned aside to manipulatethe piston rod without interference by the plunger H5.

The latch 35 is slidably mounted in'the cap 5! preferably removablysecured to the end of the sleeve i9 and havingan opening therein for thepassage of a piston rod. As best seen from Fig. 3, said latch isprovided with a bevelled projection 52 passing through the slot 43 ofthe cap and is also provided with an intermediate slot ti l throughwhich passes the piston rod 33 and the rack 35. The portion 45 of thelatch arranged at the end edge of the slot is bevelled to conform to theshape of the teeth of the toothed rack and serves as a pawl to fix therack and the piston rod relatively to the sleeve I3 against downwardmovement, though permitting the piston rod to be raised against theaction of the spring 23 into a position wherein the extension 36 engagesthe plunger head I5. Outstanding from the upper end of the base is thearm 45 terminating in a bevelled end edge 41. Said edge is designed toengage the correspondingly bevelled edge of the projection 42 to pressthe latch 35 inwardly against the action of its spring 48 and thereby toremove the pawl portion 45 from the toothed rack 34 topermit the spring29 to draw the piston rod downwardly and thereby to operate the plungerI4. Such operation of the latch occurs only when the sleeve I9 has moveddownwardly within the base 25 sufiiciently to carry the latch 35 incontact with the latch-operating edge 41.

Normally, however, the sleeve I9 is held. in its set position shown inFig. 1, ready for operation by means of the finger operated latch 43pivoted to the base 25 as at 50 and provided with a projection 5Ipassing through the opening 52 in the base and into contact with the endedge 53 of the sleeve I9. Said latch is spring pressed into itsoperative position by means of a suitable spring coiled about a pivot 50of the latch. When 1 said sleeve is pulled upwardly, it carries the bodymember I8, the syringe II, the piston 32 and piston rod 33 upwardlyuntil the edge 53 reaches a position above the holding end 52 of thelatch at which time the latch spring rotates the latch to carry itsholding end 52 inwardly and underneath the edge 53 of the sleeve therebyholding the parts in the set positions thereof. To set theplunger-operating means, the piston 32 is pulled upwardly against theaction of the spring 23, the bevelled rack 33 slipping past the pawledge 55 which yields to permit such passage. The plunger it having beenset to draw the desired quantity of liquid into the syringe barrel Ii,if the extension is above the plunger head, the latch projection 62 ispressed inwardly and the piston lowered to carry said extension intocontact with the plunger head. If said extension is below the plungerhead, it is turned aside andthen the plunger raised to carry theextension to the same level as the plunger head after which it isreleased to permit the spring 38 to carry it into contact with theplunger head.

The presser foot 25 having been set to regulate the depth of penetrationof the needle I3 into the skin, and the plunger it and extension 35having been relatively set, and the sleeve i3 having been raised up andheld in its raised position by the latch 43, the syringe attachmenttogether with the syringe is set on the skin of the person at the placewhere the injection is to be made and with the presser foot resting onthe skin, the entire assembly being handled and manipulated by means ofthe base member 25. After the syringe and its attachment have been setin place, the latch 49 is pressed thereby permitting the spring 29 topull on the piston 32. Said pull is transmitted to the sleeve I5, themember I8 and the syringe Ill by means of the latch 35 which is lockedto the piston rod 33. Consequently, the sleeve and syringe and the partscarried thereby are pulled downwardly to project the needle I3 throughthe slot of the presser foot and to cause it to pierce the skin. As thelatch 35 moves downwardly with its sleeve,

' it is engaged by the operating edge 37 and pushed toward the leftagainst the action of the spring 58 thus releasing the rack 34 andpermitting the spring 29 through its continued pull on the piston rod 32to lower the piston rod and through the extension 36 to lower the pistonI4 thereby discharging liquid from the syringe and through the needleand under the skin of the patient.

The shock of the skin-piercing operation is largely taken up by means ofthe yieldable cushion ring 55 designed to engage the'lower end edge 53of the sleeve and to cushion the last part of the movement of saidsleeve I9. A cushioning action against the too rapid injection of liquidis provided by means of air passages 56, 5T in thebase member 25, theoutlet end of the passage 51 being controlled by the screw 58 which isprise a single spring arranged concentrically of the syringe. In thisform of the invention the inner sleeve I50 is secured to the syringe bythe pivoted flange-holding member I5 I. Slidably arranged along theinner sleeve I50 is the collar I 12 is arranged the compression springI58 which tends to move said collar downwardly and there- I I through.Normally the spring I58 is prevented from doing so by the spring latchI58 pivoted to the outer sleeve I51 and having an end part passingthrough the opening I66 the outer sleeve and arranged underneath thecollar I12. Means are provided to prevent possible operation of theplunger it during the skin piercing operation of the needle and asillustrated in Fig. 5, said means comprises the lever I65 pivoted as atI68 to the upper end I61 or the inner sleeve IN. The lower end of thelever I65 is provided with a notch or recess I68 receiving an edge partI68 of 'the arm I10. Said lever passes through the slot I1I in thecollar I12 extending from said arm I16 and surrounding the inner sleeveI56. The spring I58 rests on said collar and urges said collar to getherwith the lever I65 downwardly. The flat spring I13 interposed betweenthe lever and the inner sleeve I50 urges said lever into engagement withthe part I68 oi the arm. Downward movement of the parts relatively tothe outer sleeve I51 is normally prevented by the latch I58.

'When, however. said latch is operated to release the collar I12, thespring I58 moves said collar downwardly together with the arms I16 andI54 and together with theinner sleeve'l60 and the syringe III, theplunger I4 moving withthe syringe and the arm I54 as a unit until thecushion ring I66 engages the upper end of the outer sleeve I51 whenfurther downward movement of the parts is halted and the skin-piercingoperation completed. During the latter part of the skin-piercingoperation, the downwardly bevelled portion I at the upper end of thelever I65 strikes the edge part I14 of the opening I16 in the upper partof the outer sleeve I51, whereby said lever is swung in acounter-clockwise direction about its pivot to remove the lever from itsengagement with the arm part I69 thereby releasing the arm III) fordownward movement under the action of the spring I58 and thereby toaccomplish the liquid-injecting operation. The presser foot I11 beingadjustably connected to the outer sleeve in the same manner as has beendescribed hereinbeiore in connection with the presser foot of Fig. 1, nofurther description thereof is deemed necessary.

While I have shown and described certain specific embodiments of myinvention, I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself thereto,but intend to claim my invention as broadly as may be permitted by thestate of the prior art and the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An operating attachment to project the needle and barrel of ahypodermic syringe in which the needle is attached to the barrel and tooperate the plunger in the said barrel, said attachment comprising abarrel holding member, a plunger operating member on the holding membersupported for movement with and relatively to said holding member andadapted to automatically project the needle and barrel as a unit and toseparably operate said plunger, and fluid pressure controlled means forregulating the rate of movement of said members, thereby cushioning theshock attendant the skin piercing function of the needle and theinjection of hypodermic fluid by the plunger.

2. An operating attachment to project the needle and barrel of ahypodermic syringe in III) which the needle is attached to the barreland to operate the plunger in said barrel. said attachment comprising aplunger-operating mem- ,ber .adapted to reciprocate in an enclosed fluidcontaining space and to project the needle and barrel'as a unit and toseparably operate said plunger. and means for controlling the fluidpressure in said space to regulate the rate of movement of said plungeroperating member, therebyqcushioning the needle and plunger action.

3. In a separable attachment for a complete operative syringe having abarrel provided with an attached needle and having a plunger movable insaid barrel, a barrel support adapted to be removably attached to saidbarrel, a second support for said barrel support, a plunger operatingmember adapted for movement with and independently of said barrelsupport, means for actuating saidbarrel support and plunger operatingmember relative to said second support, said plunger operating membercomprising a piston and piston rod movable in a fluid containingenclosed space within said attachment, and means for controlling thefluid pressure in said enclosed space to regulate the rate of movementor said piston.

4. The attachment as in claim 3. wherein the enclosed space within whichthe piston and its rod are adapted to move is an air containing conduitwithin said barrel support, and the means for controlling pressurecomprises valve means for regulating the air displacement of saidpiston.

5. The attachment as in claim 3, wherein the enclosed fluid containingspace includes a pas- 7 means for controlling the rate of movement ofsaid plunger operating member comprising a piston operable in saidbarrel support, a closable conduit leading from within said barrelsupport externally thereof, and a valve at the external end of saidconduit for controlling the rate of air flow through said conduit.

7. In a hypodermic syringe combination, a barrel, a needle associatedtherewith, a plunger movable in said barrel, means for projecting said Ineedle into skin piercing operation, means for moving said plunger toinject hypodermic fluid, and means for gradually retarding the movementof said needle projecting and plunger operating means to absorb theshock attendant skin piercing and hypodermic injecting operation, saidlatter means comprising a valve regulable conduit for controlling airpressure and a yieldable rubber element in the path of movement of saidneedle projecting and plunger operating means.

8. An attachment for a complete operative syringe having a barrelprovided with an attached needle and having a plunger movable in thebarrel, comprising: a holding member for fixedly engaging said barrel, abase support, said holding member being slidably associated with saidbase support, a plunger operator adapted to be locked to said holdingmember and movable therewith as a unit and also arranged for slidingmotion with respect thereto, a single spring means engaging said basesupport and engaging said plunger operator and being aaooeae of saidspring means being spaced from the axis or the syringe to be held insaid attachment.

10. The structure recited in claim 8, the axis of said spring meansbeing spaced from the axis of the syringe adapted to be held by saidattachment, said spring means consisting of a tension spring.-

IL'The structure recited in claim 8, the axi of said spring means beingcoaxial with the syringe adapted to be held by said attachment.

12. The structure recited in claim agsaid spring a means being coaxialwith the syringe adapted to be held by said attachment, said springmeans comprising a compression spring.

GUSTAVE L, KAYDEQ.

